Jacksonville, FL: Stellar has expanded into China to offer its food and beverage expertise to manufacturers and distributors growing their operations in the Asia-Pac region.
The fully integrated company has established its China headquarters in Shanghai, opened branch offices in both Beijing and Guangzhou, hired a regional manager to lead its Chinese operations, and has two active projects already underway for an international Fortune 500 food company.
Widely considered the US market leader in design-build services for food and beverage processing and distribution facilities, Stellar's clients include many Fortune 500 companies, such as Nestlé, Kraft, Starbucks, Heinz, General Mills, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Tyson and ConAgra Foods. Construction industry trade magazine, Engineering News-Record, repeatedly recognizes Stellar as the number-one firm serving food and beverage processors.
"Our expansion into China provides multinational manufacturers and distributors the same food and beverage expertise they've come to expect from us in the US, provided by professionals who understand the Chinese market, culture and business practices," said Brian Kappele, divisional vice president, Stellar Food & Beverage Facility Services. "Our team in China is a strategic mix of our US-based food and beverage architecture, engineering, construction, refrigeration, mechanical and thermal subject-matter experts, teamed up with Chinese and expatriate professionals who intimately understand the Chinese market."
In China, Stellar operates as a wholly owned foreign enterprise that is licensed to provide engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services across the whole of China. Stellar China has already commenced two significant projects worth more than $86 million for a global household-brand food company.
"As more and more of our clients began to expand into China and request our services there, we realized that it was important for us to create a high-performing team in China, which combined the best of what we offer in the US, with the Chinese cultural and business best practices know-how and expertise," said Kappele. "Due to growing concerns about food safety and quality, there are significant opportunities for global food manufacturers and distributors in China who can successfully apply the same stringent standards from their US operations to their Chinese facilities."
